


Third

by Malingshu



Category: EXO (Band), Z.Tao (Musician)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Basketball, Alternate Universe - College/University, Coming of Age, Fluff, Friendship, Love Triangles, M/M, Taoris ending, slight hunhan
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-15
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-23 19:22:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30060348
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Malingshu/pseuds/Malingshu
Summary: In which Sehun likes his best friend and dislikes the captain of his college basketball team.In which Tao has a crush on the best player of the team.In which Yifan is a desperate awkward turtle who can't seem to be nice to the person he likes.
Relationships: Huang Zi Tao | Z.Tao/Oh Sehun, Huang Zi Tao | Z.Tao/Wu Yi Fan | Kris
Comments: 9
Kudos: 31





	Third

**Author's Note:**

> This will be a three-shots fic; each chapter will be written in different POV.
> 
> I wanted to try writing about triangle love where people can see and understand all the characters' POV.
> 
> Ending will be **Taoris**.
> 
> Originally written in 2016, edited and reposted here.
> 
> English is not my first language, beware of grammatical errors.

Squeaking sound of sneakers against the polished floor.

Running footsteps.

The sound of a bouncing ball.

The crowd who’s cheering wildly from the audience seat.

The shouts of his teammates and his opponents. 

The stadium is very loud, but he can’t let it bother his focus.

Sehun glances over at the ticking time as he runs forward to the opponent’s key area of the court. There isn’t much time left, but he’s so close to the hoop already. He just needs to pass through this annoying defender of the opponent team and then he can shoot smoothly to score for the team.

“Sehun, pass!”

Sehun clicks his tongue at the annoying call. Why can’t that dumb captain see that he is trying to concentrate? Calling for his name will only distract his focus, and no, he is not going to pass the ball to anyone. This ball is his and he’s going to throw it smoothly into the basket and win the game.

Locking his eyes on the basket above, Sehun stops his steps abruptly and aims to the hoop. Of course, the defender in front of him quickly reacts by raising both hands in the air, not knowing that Sehun is doing a pump fake.

_Gotcha._

Smirking slightly, Sehun drops back to his original position and quickly steps aside from the opponent to shoot for real. Once he’s in the best spot, he makes a jump shot and releases the ball from his hand smoothly.

Only to be blocked by the same defender who seems to be fast enough to react to Sehun's fake.

The ball hits the opponent’s hand and bounces back to the ground, earning a curse from Sehun and a loud yell from the audience. Sehun knows he has to get a hold of the ball again before the opponent does, and that he needs to shoot before the time ends. Though before he can reach for the bouncing ball, another hand has caught it swiftly.

Sehun watches as the captain grabs the ball and executes a smooth pull-up jump shot, throwing the ball into the basket so smoothly as if it belongs there.

A second after that, the sound of a whistle rings loudly inside the room, ending the game.

“We won!!!”

Chanyeol is the first one who cries out in victory as he jumps on his heel and raises both hands in the air, like a cheerleader. 

“Baekhyun! Did you see that? Did you watch it when I scored?”

Chanyeol yells loudly, waving both hands to his boyfriend who is sitting in the audience chair, though Baekhyun can’t seem to hear his yell since all the audience are cheering so loudly. The smaller male just waves back with a bright smile before blowing a kiss to his tall boyfriend. Chanyeol beams as he reaches a hand to catch the kiss with his hand and place it to his own lips.

The lovely sight actually earns some meaningful cringes from other people who are unfortunate enough to witness the scene.

Sehun bends his body down and places both hands on his knees as he catches his breath. He lifts his head up and accidentally looks at the captain and also the one who took the winning score earlier; Yifan.

The elder runs a hand through his sweaty blonde hair before turning to Sehun when he feels a rather uncomfortable stare from the other.

They stare at each other for a while, feeling the spark and tension between them as Yifan furrows his thick brows and Sehun narrows his eyes. It almost looks like they’re going to throw some fists anytime soon if only there aren’t so many people around them right now. 

He has never liked Yifan and he knows the feeling is mutual for both of them. 

“Sehun! We won!”

The intense staring between both boys is immediately snapped when Tao throws an arm over Sehun’s shoulders and beams at him. All the fumes earlier immediately dissipate from Sehun’s head as he looks at his best friend’s smiling face.

“Yeah, I was so close to taking the winning score though.” Sehun sighs, pretending to be disappointed since he knows that Tao is going to cheer him up like usual.

“Oh, you did great! You managed to pass two opponents and got so close to the key area, you’re the best player on the team!” Tao says, clenching his fist and bumps it lightly against Sehun’s chest, earning a laugh from the younger.

“I was cool right?” Sehun grins while wiggling his eyebrows. Tao laughs before smacking his friend’s head playfully.

“You should have passed the ball.”

Yifan stern voice cuts off their laugh as both the boys immediately look up to the captain who’s now standing in front of them with a disapproving look on his face.

“You risked our team too much. It was purely luck that I managed to grab a hold of the ball and didn’t miss my shot. You have the ability, but you don’t have the teamwork.” Yifan says harshly before darting his eyes to Tao. “And you, Tao. Control your temper, you made a lot of fouls throughout the game. I’ll have to keep you on the bench for the final if you keep on being like this.”

Sehun rolls his eyes while Tao drops his head apologetically. Yifan gives Sehun a look but doesn’t say anything more to the younger as he turns around and makes his way back to the other teammates who are still cheering loudly at their win.

“He can never say something nice to us, can’t he?” Sehun scoffs and rolls his eyes.

“Well, that’s our captain though.” Tao smiles wryly before dragging Sehun over to the others to celebrate their win.

They end up celebrating their semi-final win in a fast food restaurant nearby the stadium. It’s not a healthy way to celebrate for basketball players like them, but who cares? The final match is still a week away.

“For the best player of the team and our captain!”

The boys cheer loudly on their table before bumping their drinks together in the middle. Yifan shakes his head and chuckles lightly while the other guys start to talk about how awesome he was and how he saved the team in the last seconds of the match.

Tao is sitting next to Sehun as he joins in the talk about how awesome the match was. Chanyeol though, keeps on bragging about how he scored on free throws and when he made a successful lay up. Tao, being a kind soul he is, applauds at Chanyeol while everybody is trying to hit the tall male.

Sehun tries to laugh as natural as possible, not really enjoying how they’re all praising at Yifan when he was the one who managed to steal the ball from the opponent’s hand.

Sehun is a good player of course, but according to the team, Yifan is the _best_ player. Though they do admit that Sehun is a great player too, just not as good as Yifan. Even though none of the members ever talked about it, they're all sure that Sehun would take over the captain position once Yifan graduated college, which is a couple of months away.

“But Sehun is pretty good too, I’m sure you’ll be as good as Yifan in no time.” Jongin says as he munches on his crispy chicken.

“Ew, you spat your chicken at me!” Tao screeches in disgust as he wipes his hand with a napkin before throwing it across to Jongin.

The others laugh at the scene except Sehun who’s twitching his lips in an attempt to laugh naturally, which doesn’t really work of course.

He dislikes it when people compare him to Yifan, especially when they say that he is one step _behind_ Yifan. Hell, he is _better_ than Yifan.

Sometimes he wonders, why does he dislike Yifan so much?

Sehun doesn’t really know how it started, but he has never been fond of Yifan to begin with. Maybe it’s because he was the best basketball player back then in high school and he got too ahead of himself, thinking that no one would play better than him in college, and it was proven wrong when he met Yifan.

Childish, yes. But Sehun was a young soul and it’s not like no one ever got jealous when they see someone who managed to snatch away all the attention just because they’re _slightly_ better. Besides, Yifan is also a harsh and bossy person, which gives Sehun more reason to dislike the captain even more. Sehun doesn’t like to lose, and he doesn’t like to be told what to do and what not.

A year ago, a few days after joining the basketball club, he challenged Yifan for a one-on-one match because he simply disliked how bossy Yifan was, and even though he’s aware that Yifan is the captain, Sehun still didn’t like it. He wanted to show Yifan that he was good and that he won’t be ordered around by a bossy captain.

In the end, he lost the match to Yifan.

Maybe it’s the matter of pride or jealousy, but Sehun refuses to admit that the bad relationship between him and Yifan was solely because of his fault.

Yifan is also the one at fault for this.

Sehun actually put his pride down once to admit his loss and apologized to Yifan after the match, but Yifan didn’t seem to let it go. He often found Yifan sort of glaring at him even though he did nothing wrong. He also noticed how Yifan spoke rather harshly to him compared to how he spoke to other teammates. His conclusion is; Yifan is an immature ass who has a serious problem in not holding a grudge.

Or maybe some people were born to dislike each other naturally.

He can’t really say that he _hates_ Yifan. Sure he has such a bad personality, but Sehun has to admit that Yifan is a good player and a good captain. If only Yifan can stop being immature, Sehun is sure that they can probably get along well, at least in the court. But no, Yifan is an ass.

Not to mention how he often finds Yifan speaking rather harshly to Tao or tells the latter to run some errands like buying drinks or cleaning the court. Just because Yifan doesn’t like him, it doesn’t mean he can be mean to Tao just because the tanned male is his best friend.

Sehun scoffs lightly as he takes a sip of the cola on the table, not caring about the fact that it is Tao’s drink.

“Hey, that’s mine!”

Tao whines like a kid and immediately shoves his cheek against Sehun’s in an attempt to push the other’s head away from his drink. Sehun pulls the straw out from his mouth with an annoyed groan and Tao quickly catches the straw with his own mouth and gulps his cola while squinting at Sehun.

Sehun holds the glass up and laughs as he stares at Tao’s glaring face. Though his laugh falters when he feels a glare from across the seat. He tilts his head to see Yifan glaring at him with fire inside his eyes.

See? What did he do wrong for Yifan to glare like that?

Sehun returns the glare with a roll of eyes before turning his attention to Tao again.

Yifan's glare doesn’t subside.

Sehun doesn’t care.

===

“Ohhhh I can’t feel my legs anymore!”

Tao groans helplessly and leans over against Sehun as they walk down the street, almost making the younger one lose his balance at the sudden weight from his side.

“Shit Tao, you’re heavy.” Sehun groans and uses his hand to push his friend away. Tao pulls away with a small groan before swaying down the street again.

The final match is just a couple days away which means they have to practice extra hard, but then Yifan thought it’s a good idea to give both Sehun and Tao extra sets just because they have been talking to each other too much through the practice. He remembers how Yifan told them to do more push-ups, squat jumps and run a couple of more laps. Sehun is pretty sure that Yifan is planning to tire them off so they won’t be able to play in the upcoming match, evil enough.

He wouldn’t be surprised if Yifan does that to him, but why drag Tao into this?

“I don’t think I can make my way home… Can I stay over at your place tonight?” Tao asks, his brows arched pleadingly.

“Since when did you ask permission to crash over at my place?” Sehun snorts and Tao gives him a light smack before laughing.

They arrive at Sehun’s apartment minutes later and Tao immediately lays himself on the floor until Sehun nudges him with his foot as if he’s poking a corpse. They end up eating instant ramen for dinner, taking a shower, and Tao stealing Sehun’s clothes from the closet, before finally settling on Sehun’s messy yet comfy bed.

“Our opponent for the final is strong you know.”

Tao sighs, staring at the TV as Sehun flips the channel over.

“We’re going to win.” Sehun replies casually, confident enough. 

“We are, if you and Yifan can actually get along.”

Sehun frowns and turns his head from the TV to stare Tao. “What do you mean by that?”

Tao looks over to his friend before adjusting his seat on the bed.

“No one ever says this in front of you both, but we all notice the tension between you and Yifan. Both of you are good players — hell, the best that I’ve ever seen. But in the court you guys just… don’t get along well.” Tao gestures with a hand as he explains. “You never passed the ball to Yifan and Yifan is also… I don’t know, he glares at you a lot? Funny that he should’ve been glaring at the opponents instead to scare them off.”

Sehun keeps frowning at his friend.

“If only you guys can work nicely together, I’m sure we can win pretty easily.” Tao shrugs before turning his eyes back to the TV screen.

“It’s not my fault.” Sehun scoffs.

“You challenged him for a one-on-one match a few days after you joined the club just because you didn’t like the way he led the team.” Tao reminds him of the obvious. 

“It was in the past okay?” Sehun groans and rolls his eyes. “I have apologized for it, okay? But did you see what he did to me? I tried to fix our relationship and teamwork shit but he is still being an immature ass. How am I supposed to make good teamwork with that kind of person?”

Silence fills the room for a while before Tao lets out a soft sigh.

“He is a nice person, Sehun. Maybe you should try and talk to him again?”

“Nice?” Sehun raises a brow in disbelief. How in the world can Tao say something nice about Yifan when the latter is obviously being so hard on Tao every time? Sehun is sure that if someone outside the club sees the relationship between Yifan and Tao, they’d immediately think of _bullying._

“He just tortured us for nothing at today’s practice and you’re saying that he’s nice? You know how much an ass he is towards me.” Sehun scoffs and shakes his head. 

“Well,” Tao shrugs. “I have noticed for a while that he kept his eyes on you whenever you’re practicing. He also gives you advice on how to improve your jump and everything. I think he knows that you’re a good player and he wants you to be better. I think he just can’t say something nice, but he shows it with his action instead.”

Sehun stays quiet, not really denying the words because what Tao said is all true.

Sure, Yifan has been an ass to him and Tao, but it’s not like he never noticed how Yifan gave him advice and helped him to improve his three-point shoot. Sometimes, Sehun thinks that _maybe_ Yifan is a good person, but by the next second, the captain will give Sehun that annoying glare of his again.

Sehun concludes that the reason Yifan gives him oh-so-wonderful advice is simply because he’s showing off as the captain, like _oh hey you need to fix this because I am the best player and I can see through your weak points._

“He’s still an ass though.” Sehun shakes his head. “And I’m a great player.”

Tao snorts softly but nods his head anyway. “Yeah, you’re the best player on the team. You’re our ace” He hums softly, eyes sparkled and lips stretched into a smile that Sehun damn loves. His heart is fluttering happily, especially with the way Tao says that he is the best player in the team. Everyone has been saying that Yifan is the best player, but in his best friend’s eyes, he is the best player, not Yifan.

And that’s what matters for Sehun.

Sehun doesn’t really know how it started, really. He just went to the same high school with Tao and they happened to have the same group of friends. He and Tao got along pretty well, perhaps it was because they’re both playful and troublemakers. Sehun had lost count of how many times they’re kicked out of class or had detention together. In short, he and Tao became best friends quickly.

How did his feelings turn into love, then?

If Sehun has to point something, perhaps it was the time when his parents were talking about divorce and he ended up venting his frustration on Tao. He remembered stealing his father’s soju and ran to Tao’s house in a half-drunk state. He didn’t remember much after that aside from him rambling about how stupid his parents were. The next day he woke up, Tao was beside him on the bed, hugging him gently as they slept through the whole night.

When he stared at Tao’s peaceful sleeping face, Sehun felt something grow inside him. As time passed by, he realized that he’s pretty much in love with Tao.

He never confesses, of course. He doesn’t want to ruin the beautiful friendship he has with Tao. Just being by his side like this as a best friend is enough for Sehun.

At least for now.

“Hey, Tao?”

Sehun calls out, staring at the Kung Fu Panda movie that’s currently playing on the channel. Hearing no response, he turns his head to see Tao sleeping soundly beside him. He gapes at the sight for a second before chuckling lightly.

How cute.

He turns the TV off and puts the remote aside before looking back to his sleeping best friend, staring at his face closely. He can feel his heart beating wildly inside his chest as he gazes at Tao. 

Tao looks so vulnerable like this. No one would guess that this sleeping male beside him is actually a master of wushu and is able to knock someone off with a single punch. Tao looks the best when he smiles and when he sleeps. Sehun knows because he has been watching him for quite a while. 

Every time he sees Tao in such a defenseless state like this, he always has to hold back the urge to do something, just like right now.

Tao is deeply asleep, right?

Biting his lip in hesitation, Sehun slowly leans closer to the other’s face. He knows he is not supposed to do this, but he can’t seem to let this chance slip away. Staring closely at his best friend’s face once again, Sehun finally closes his eyes and leans more to press their lips together.

He must be pressing his lips too hard or too long, because the next thing he knows, he is being pushed away by the other. He quickly snaps his eyes open to stare at Tao who is now sitting on his bed, eyes wide and jaw dropped slightly.

Shit.

“T-Tao…” Sehun calls out carefully, trying to move closer to the other.

“What were you doing, Sehun?” Tao asks, remaining unmoving from his spot as he stares at Sehun.

He fucked up. After years of maintaining his friendship with Tao, he crushes it so easily because of his greediness. Sehun drops his head shamefully, preparing himself for anything Tao is going to do, probably hit him and run out of his apartment.

“What were you doing, Sehun?”

To his surprise, Tao repeats his question, his voice is not harsh and demanding, but it’s rather soft and questioning. Sehun lifts his head up to see Tao who has a softened expression compared to before. Tao still looks surprised, of course, but it looks like he’s waiting for an answer, as if he’s really wondering what Sehun was doing earlier, as if Sehun didn’t just take advantage of him by kissing him in his sleep.

Sehun is thankful that Tao didn’t leave or get angry just like what he expected. This is why he fell in love with Tao; his best friend has the heart of an angel.

“I—“ Sehun starts up, rubbing the back of his head nervously. “I like you, Tao.”

He glances over to Tao who looks much more surprised than before, but his best friend doesn’t do anything to stop his speech, so Sehun continues.

“I have, for a while now… Since high school, actually.” Sehun chuckles softly and shakes his head. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to take advantage of you sleeping but—“ he sighs and gestures weakly with a hand. “I just… I’m sorry. We’re best friends but I have this kind of feeling for you…”

“I—It’s okay.” Tao replies, eyes darting around the room as he speaks. “I mean… I know how it feels to like someone, so…”

“You like someone?” Sehun lifts his head up, blinking his wide eyes. This is the first time he heard anything about his friend liking someone.

Tao looks back at him and bites his lip before nodding. “Yes, sorry…”

Sehun feels a pang on his chest. 

Well, he shouldn’t be surprised about this. It’s not like he actually has a chance with Tao after all. He chuckles sadly to himself before dropping gaze down again, what was he dreaming about? Thinking that his love would be returned?

“This person that you like...“ Sehun mutters softly, trailing his finger absently against the white sheet of his bed. “Is she pretty?”

There is a beat of silence before Tao huffs out an answer. “It’s a guy.”

Sehun freezes at the answer. Somehow, he gets a bad feeling about this. He can feel his heart clenching uncomfortably and something is choking the air away from him. He can even feel the room temperature drop abruptly.

“...Do I know him?” He asks quietly.

He can hear Tao suking a deep breath before answering again. “You do.”

Sehun has an awful feeling about this, like, really awful. There is a person that crosses his mind at this second, someone that shouldn’t even stand a chance to be the person that Tao likes. But something from the back of his mind tells him that _he_ is the person.

Never once Sehun wishes that he’s wrong about his guess.

“Is it Yifan?”

A long silence follows and Sehun doesn’t like where this is going. Clenching his fist against the bed sheet under him, he tries to breathe normally and control his anger or whatever it is that’s choking the air away from him.

“Answer me, Tao.”

There’s another long silence and finally, Sehun can’t take it anymore. He lifts his gaze up and launches himself to Tao, gripping tight onto the other’s forearm as he glares at his best friend.

“Is it him? Why won’t you answer me!?”

He asks, his voice sounding more desperate than angry. Tao sniffles softly before finally looking up to Sehun, his eyes are showing deep sadness and guilt as if he’s not supposed to fall in love with someone else. Tao can fall in love with anybody he wants, but not Yifan, Sehun can’t accept this. 

“I’m sorry, Sehun.”

It is all Tao says, but Sehun knows the answer already. Tao likes Yifan.

Yifan doesn’t only beat him in basketball games. Yifan also beats him in love.

Sehun may be the best player in Tao’s eyes, but Yifan is still the one who has his heart.

This is so unfair.

“Why Yifan?” Sehun mutters under his breath, still gripping tight onto the other’s arms, not caring if it will form any bruise. “Why him, Tao? Out of all people, why him?”

Tao just stares at him. His black orbs are glistening with tears and Sehun knows that he is crying too since he feels tears burning in his own eyes, his heart clenches painfully inside his chest.

“I’m sorry, Sehun. I’m really sorry…” Tao mutters weakly, shaking his head as he sniffles. “I just fell.”

_I just fell._

How simple.

Then why didn’t Tao fall in love with him instead? Why Yifan? Why him, out of all people? Why his rival and the person he dislikes so much?

Sehun slowly releases Tao’s poor arms and drops his hands to his side, shaking his head in disbelief as he chuckles at how pathetic he is.

“How can it be him, Tao?” Sehun sighs desperately, covering his eyes with a hand as he speaks.

There is a beat of silence and he can hear Tao inhaling deeply before answering.

“Do you remember that time, when I injured my foot once at practice?”

Sehun looks up and sees Tao speaking whilst gazing into an empty space, as if recalling the memory. Sehun really doesn’t like where this is going, he doesn’t want to hear it, but he’s also the one who asked in the first place. So he nods his head, because he does remember that day.

“You guys were going to have Korean bbq, but I stayed back in the gym since my foot was hurting. You told me you would come home with me but I told you to join them because I didn’t want to ruin anybody’s fun.” Tao huffs out a small laugh.

Sehun remembers. Tao waved a hand with a smile and told him to eat with the others while he’d call a cab or asked someone to pick him up with a car. Sehun nodded his head and told Tao to text him if he had arrived home safely, which Tao did an hour later.

“I called some people, but none of them could pick me up, so I figured that I had to go home by myself. I was packing my stuff in the bag and was ready to go home, but then Yifan stepped into the room.” Tao smiles slightly as he speaks. “I asked him if he didn’t join the others to eat, but he just knelt down in front of me and checked on my foot.”

Sehun remembers that Yifan wasn’t there when they arrived in the restaurant. He didn’t ask why though, he wasn’t bothered to care about the captain. If only he knew what Yifan was doing that evening, he wouldn’t have let it happen. 

“He then took care of it, bandaged it and stuff. And then he asked me if someone was going to pick me up, and I said no one. So he… he took my bag and carefully guided me to his car, and then he took me home that evening.”

Sehun holds his breath at the words. If only he stayed back with Tao that night, maybe he would be the one who takes his best friend home. 

“Even after we arrived at my apartment, he still carried my bag and helped me to get into my room. He told me to get some rest and then he left.” Tao sighs and bites onto his lower lip. “I like him since then. I used to think that he’s strict and a bit cold, but… he’s actually very gentle. I know he’s being mean to me and everything but my heart just won’t listen. I know the real him, the caring and gentle side of him.”

Sehun watches Tao with a hurtful gaze. It hurts him to see how Tao’s eyes sparkle when he talks about Yifan. He shouldn’t have left with the others that time. If he stayed with Tao, then he would prevent Tao from falling in love with Yifan.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Sehun mutters under his breath.

“Because you dislike Yifan.” Tao answers quietly.

“You just give me a reason to dislike him even more.” Sehun chuckles, but there’s no humor in his eyes nor his voice.

“Sehun—“

“No.” He cuts off, lifting his hand to Tao and shaking his head. He doesn’t want to hear more of this. He has had enough for tonight. “Sorry, Tao. Can you just sleep at your own home tonight?”

“Sehun—“

“Please.”

Tao stares at him for a while before nodding his head weakly, making the tears trail down his cheeks. He quickly wipes it with his hands, knowing that he shouldn’t be the one who cries when Sehun is the one who gets his heart broken.

“Okay, I’ll go home now.” He nods, immediately getting off from the bed and picks his bag up. “I’m really sorry, Sehun…” He mutters softly before making his way out of the door, leaving Sehun sitting alone on the bed, trying not to cry over his heartbreak and regret.

Why Yifan out of all people? What’s so good about him?

He has been with Tao for years, and Tao just knows Yifan for about a year. So how can Sehun lose to Yifan when it comes to Tao?

Sehun doesn’t understand.

===

Sehun slams the basketball hard against the ground, making it bounce up higher than necessary.

“Sehun, what the fuck?” Chanyeol frowns but Sehun ignores him as he catches the ball and throws it into the hoop.

Tao stares at his friend from a distance. It’s obvious that Sehun is still angry and has been avoiding Tao since then. Tao would be lying if he says he’s not sad about it because after all, Sehun is his best friend and he wants them to stay that way for a very long time. 

“Sehun.” Tao calls out, slowly making his way to Sehun.

“Stay away.” Sehun huffs out before turning away from Tao.

The other guys stare at the so-called best friends who seem to be fighting right now. It’s weird since none of them ever saw Sehun and Tao fighting, they always get along really well that it even pisses Yifan off for some reason.

“Whoa, seems like he’s having a fight with Tao. No wonder he’s being so sour today.” Jongin whispers to Chanyeol and the taller nods in agreement.

“Practice is finished.”

Yifan calls out from the middle of the court, clapping his hands to gain everybody’s attention.

“Put the balls back into the basket, don’t forget to get a nice rest and don’t tire yourself out before the final match.” Yifan says his usual speech for ending the practice. After seeing the other guys nod their heads and start working, he points his eyes to the youngest in the room. “Sehun, stay here after we finish. I need to have a word with you.”

Sehun takes a deep breath and rolls his eyes, trying to keep his patience. As much as he wants to punch Yifan right now, he knows they’re going to have an important match and he’s going to get in trouble if he really punches the latter.

After Tao, the last person in the court, leaves with a worried look on his face, Yifan turns around and stares at Sehun who’s picking one of the balls from the basket and throws it in the air.

“So, what is your problem?” Yifan asks as he steps closer to the younger male.

Sehun catches the ball with his hands and turns his head to Yifan. “Nothing.” He says before starting to dribble the ball lightly.

“I know you dislike me, but you never act like this with the others.” Yifan sighs. “You even seem to avoid Tao, are you two having a fight or something?”

Sehun stops dribbling instantly at the name. He holds the ball tightly in his hands as he feels a spark of fire inside his chest.

“Don’t say his name so casually.” Sehun mutters through his gritted teeth.

“What?” Yifan frowns and steps closer, not catching the word Sehun said.

“I said don’t say his name so casually!”

Sehun snaps and turns his head to glare at Yifan. He then throws the ball as hard as he can to Yifan's face, though the captain manages to catch the ball before it hits his face.

“What are you—“

Before Yifan can finish his words, Sehun already makes his way to Yifan and with a swift motion, he steals the ball from Yifan's grasp, immediately running over to the hoop and does a perfect lay-up.

The ball slips into the basket smoothly and before it bounces back to the floor, Sehun runs over to grab the ball in the air, but Yifan already gets his hand on the ball. The blonde turns around and runs over to the other side of the court. Sehun, being quick to react, quickly chases the captain and attempts to steal the ball, though Yifan doesn’t let him easily.

Yifan manages to fool Sehun with a step back jump shot and throws the ball smoothly into the hoop. The younger quickly runs over to grab the ball, and that’s how the unofficial one-on-one match starts.

No one counts the time, the score, the fouls, or anything. No one bothers and no one cares because the only thing that matters is they’re playing against each other again after a year.

Sehun has to admit that Yifan is a damn good player, he is tall but fast, his movement is smooth yet strong, his eyes are sharp and he is quick to react. Sehun doesn’t remember if he ever played with someone this good back then in high school. He doesn’t like Yifan at all, but he would be lying if he says that he doesn’t enjoy this game at all.

Yifan seems to feel the same, because aside from his furrowed brows and narrowed eyes, Sehun can somehow see a spark of amusement inside those hazel eyes.

They have no idea how long they have been playing, but they are now laying flat with their backs against the floor, panting heavily. The basketball is long forgotten as it rolls to the corner of the room.

The practice room is usually so loud since there are so many people, not to mention Chanyeol and Kai who can’t seem to stay quiet. But right now, there is no other sound besides their heavy breathings. Sehun starts to notice how big the gym is and that the ceiling is actually pretty high.

“You are a good player.”

Yifan suddenly says and Sehun turns his head to the side, looking at Yifan who is staring at the ceiling.

“You are a good player too.” Sehun replies before turning his head back to the ceiling.

There is silence follows and Sehun never thought he is going to feel this calm when he’s placed in the same room as Yifan.

“The upcoming match would be my last.”

Sehun turns his head to Yifan again, who is still staring at the ceiling. He starts to wonder if Yifan is actually talking to the ceiling instead of him.

“You’re quitting the club after this?”

Well, he decides to keep the conversation going anyway, who knows Yifan is actually talking to him.

“I’m going to quit the club, and basketball too.”

Sehun gapes at the answer and Yifan finally turns his head to look at him, twitching the corner of his lips into a dry smile.

“Congratulations, you’re going to be the next captain.” Yifan raises his brows, making the tone of his speech slightly more cheerful.

“But—why?” Sehun frowns and shakes his head. Yifan is a good player. Hell, he is a talented player, so there’s no reason for him to quit basketball.

“Let’s say…” Yifan frowns thoughtfully as if he’s really thinking about something hard. “My heart needs a little bit of attention.” He says, placing a hand against his chest and pats it lightly.

Sehun feels his heart sink a little bit. He never thought that Yifan had a problem with his health, he never said anything about it, he never showed it. Yifan always acts like a captain, guiding the team, supporting the players, protecting them from dirty opponents, and teaching them how to be a better player.

He doesn’t see it because he’s too busy disliking Yifan, but maybe Tao sees it, that’s why he fell in love with Yifan.

“No offense, but I don’t need your pity.”

Yifan's voice pulls Sehun out of his thoughts as he blinks rapidly and stares at the older male again.

“I’m just surprised… I mean, you never—I didn’t know…” He stutters, not really knowing what to say.

“Nobody knows. I didn’t tell anybody.” Yifan nods.

“Then, why me?” The younger frowns.

“Honestly, I don’t even know.” Yifan snorts lightly. “Maybe it’s because I’m jealous of you?”

“Jealous? Me?” Sehun drops his mouth open, blinking as he points a finger at himself. “Why?”

“Because you’re a better player than me?” The elder shrugs before turning his eyes back to the ceiling.

“Are you kidding me?” Sehun shakes his head in disbelief. “You are the better player, everybody knows that.”

“The others said that.” Yifan sighs. “But I personally think you are better than me.” He turns his head to Sehun with a foreign look in his eyes, something Sehun has never seen from the other. “And your friend also thinks that you’re the best player in the team.”

His friend? Sehun frowns for a moment before catching a name. “Tao?”

“Yeah, Tao.” Yifan nods and turns to look at the ceiling again. “There’s another thing that makes me jealous too.”

“And what is that?” Sehun raises a brow.

“Tao.”

There is a long silence as Sehun tries to connect all the dots inside his head, piecing all the puzzle pieces in his mind. Yifan is jealous of him because of Tao.

_Oh._

“You like Tao.”

His voice sounds like a statement rather than a question, but Yifan still nods at it anyway.

“Yeah, I like him. But he’s always looking at you, smiling at you, walking beside you…” Yifan says with a soft sigh, eyes dazed and empty as he looks up to the ceiling.

“But you’re mean to him though. You’re so hard on him and you always tell him to run some errands.” Sehun squints as he speaks, trying to recall any moment that shows Yifan's actual feelings for the younger male.

“I know!” Yifan suddenly groans. “I just—I don’t know how to… I think I just like to bully him...?” He coughs lightly and turns his head away.

Sehun blinks at the elder for a while before slowly turning his head to look at the ceiling too, thinking about what he just found out and how funny life is. Who would have guessed that the person he likes and the person he dislikes are actually in love with each other?

He snorts at the thought before breaking into a fit of laughter.

He should’ve cried for this, for his awful heartbreak and how cruel love can be. He should feel sad and broken at the fact, but he can’t bring himself to cry right now. He just laughs. Laughs at how sucks this situation is, how sad his love life is, and how funny life can be.

Yifan, the one he has always been jealous at, is actually jealous of him.

He was mad at Yifan for stealing Tao’s heart, but Yifan was actually the one who’s mad because he thinks Sehun is the one who owns Tao’s heart.

Funny, too funny.

“I know I’m lame and it’s hopeless, but you don’t have to laugh like that, you know.” Yifan huffs and rolls his eyes.

Sehun continues to laugh for a little while before eventually calming down.

“Sorry, I’m just surprised.” He sighs with a smile. “Since when did you like Tao?”

Yifan raises his brows slightly before answering.

“It wasn’t that long since the new semester started. As usual, there were cocky seniors who thought that they could make fun of lame freshmen and stuff like that.” He says and Sehun nods, remembering those annoying days.

“One time, I saw a freshman being cornered on the back side of the university building. They were spitting at him and tried to snatch his wallet. It was a disgusting sight and I wanted to stop them but Tao did it first.” Yifan huffs out a laugh as he recalls the memory.

“Tao shielded the poor guy with his body and then spat at the seniors. I thought… it’s amazing to see how brave he is even though he’s also a freshman. One of the seniors tried to hit him but he... I don’t know, I felt like watching an action movie. He just swung his leg and jumped and suddenly, they’re all on the ground.” Yifan gestures lightly as he speaks as if he can show Sehun how Tao kicked those asses.

“That’s wushu, he has been learning it since he was a kid.” Sehun adds and Yifan nods his head in understanding before continuing with his story.

“Then he helped the poor guy to stand up, and he smiled. I didn’t think that he could smile like that, so cute and innocent, coming from someone who can kick over five guys at once.” Yifan drops his hand back to the ground and sighs. “I have been interested in him since then… I got so happy when he joined the basketball club, but then I saw you.”

Yifan turns his head to Sehun and the younger cocks a brow.

“You probably notice how much of an ass I am to you, and I’m really sorry about that. To be honest, I’m not really a mature person. I get jealous, I bully the person that I like, I can’t express my feelings properly, stuff like that.”

Sehun blinks and laughs, throwing his head back against the floor as he pounds a fist lightly against the hard surface.

“And here I wondered if you still haven’t forgiven the cocky freshman who challenged you for a one-on-one match.”

“I actually enjoyed that match, you have no idea.” Yifan says as he props himself up with his elbows.

“Yeah, I enjoyed it too.” Sehun replies, propping himself up to sit. “Sorry for being rude to you too, I was pissed off.”

“That’s a natural reaction, I don’t blame you.” Yifan raises both hands and shakes his head.

“Sorry for aiming the ball to your face too, I was in a sour mood.” Sehun sighs and rubs the back of his neck.

“If you didn’t do that we wouldn’t have a match and we wouldn’t have a nice talk like this.” Yifan shrugs.

“Right, you should be thankful then.” Sehun nods and Yifan laughs.

“Alright, are we good now?” Yifan asks, lifting his fist to the younger male.

Sehun stares at the fist for a while before bringing his own fist and bumps it against Yifan’s.

“Yeah, we’re good now.”

They share another laugh before standing up to their feet and finally close the gym for the day. Yifan is surprisingly not a bad person once they get to talk properly and somehow, they end up having a small dinner at the fast food restaurant nearby before calling it a day.

Sehun places his tray of food on the table and decides to check his phone, seeing all the messages from Tao.

_From: Tao_

_Sehun, I’m sorry._

_From: Tao_

_Please text me if you’re done talking with Yifan._

_From: Tao_

_Don’t forget to eat dinner and rest well._

_From: Tao_

_Sorry if I’m bothering you, tell me if you still don’t want to talk to me._

He smiles softly at the messages and shakes his head, thinking about how caring Tao is. Clueless and innocent, yes. Childish and playful, yes. But Tao has always been such a lovable person and that’s one of the reasons Sehun fell for him in the first place.

_To: Tao_

_I am okay now._

“So, uh.” Yifan suddenly says, snapping Sehun’s attention to him. “Are you and Tao dating or something?”

Sehun’s mouth drops open before he laughs loudly. He throws his head back as he holds onto his stomach.

“I thought you’re genuinely asking me to grab dinner, but now I see the actual reason.” Sehun says between his laugh.

“I was genuinely asking you for dinner, I am just trying to have a conversation now.” Yifan deadpans.

“Okay, first thing first, we are not dating and I don’t think it will happen anymore.”

He is not going to tell Yifan that he has been rejected because Tao is in love with the annoying captain of the team who is now sitting across him while munching onto his burger like a barbarian who hasn’t eaten anything for a week.

“What do you mean _anymore_? What happened? Did you get someone or did he get someone?” Yifan asks, voice slightly muffled by the food in his mouth.

“Not telling.” Sehun shakes his head while clicking his tongue and Yifan rolls his eyes so hard.

Sehun laughs in satisfaction before checking his phone again when it buzzes lightly inside his pocket.

_From: Tao_

_Okay? Can I come over to your place again sometime?_

_From: Tao_

_I’m sorry for being selfish Sehun, but you’re still important to me._

Smiling, he types a reply before continuing his conversation with Yifan.

_To: Tao_

_You are important to me too, stupid._

===

If they have to pick a word that can describe the final match right now, it's a _miracle_.

No one knows what happened, but this is the first time Yifan and Sehun actually work together as a team, and just like what they have expected, everything becomes easier. Still, they can’t rest easy, because the opponent of the final match is indeed strong.

Apparently, their opponent is the winner of last year’s match and it seems that they’re still planning to keep their winning title for this year too.

Tao shields the ball with his body as he stares at two opponents who are circling him, waiting for an opening to steal the ball in his hand. He darts his eyes around to scan the crowd, cursing inwardly when he finds no clear spot. He can’t possibly break through two people like this, he has to pass, but to who?

“Tao!”

He perks up to see Yifan raising a hand in the air as he runs across the court. With sparkling eyes, Tao quickly jumps and passes the ball to the captain. Yifan catches it smoothly before making his way to the key area, earning a loud cheer from the excited audience.

Yifan stops his step abruptly and keeps the ball close to him as another two opponents stand in front of him, guarding the hoop. They’re aware that Yifan just needs one more shoot to flip the score and win the match and they can’t let it happen.

Yifan darts his eyes between the hoop above him, to the opponents, and to the ticking time. There are just a couple of seconds left and they still need to score one more time to win this, he can’t possibly do this alone.

That’s right, he can’t.

But Sehun can.

Yifan turns his body sideway and throws the ball to an empty space of the court. Everybody turns their eyes to the ball, wondering if Yifan is too desperate that he decides to throw the ball away. But their question is soon answered when Sehun runs over and catches the ball with his hand.

Nobody expects that Sehun and Yifan will do great teamwork today. No one expects that Sehun will take the ball and of course, no one expects that he is going to shoot.

One of the opponents has managed to get in front of Sehun, but the younger still executes a jump shot, knowing that there is no other choice now.

The opponent player follows Sehun to jump, slightly bumping his body against Sehun in an attempt to ruin his aim. The ball flies from Sehun’s hand and reaches the hoop. It spins around the ring and everything feels like a slow motion. Sehun, Tao, Yifan, Jongin and Chanyeol are holding their breath, staring at the hoop with hopeful eyes.

_Please, please get in, please._

Their prayers are heard.

After spinning around for a couple of times, the ball slips into the hoop and falls to the floor, accompanied by a ringing sound of a whistle from the official. The game has ended.

“We won…”

Sehun mutters under his breath and stares at the scoreboard.

_SM University – 193_

_YG University – 191_

“We won, guys!! We won!!”

Sehun cheers loudly, too distracted to notice that he’s the first person who cheers for their win. Chanyeol seems to be busy staring at the scoreboard, probably wondering if he’s dreaming.

“We won, Sehun!”

Tao runs over and throws his arms over the younger, hugging him tightly against his chest. Sehun laughs happily before wrapping his arms back around Tao and hugs him tighter. Soon, the other guys run over and squeeze the two boys. They let out some victorious cries before jumping on their heels like kids who won some toys in the arcade.

“Baekhyun, we won!!”

Chanyeol separates himself from the team to welcome his boyfriend who is running towards him from the audience seat. Baekhyun throws himself to the tall male and Chanyeol quickly wraps his arms around his boyfriend, spinning him around in the middle of the court.

For the first time, instead of cringing, Sehun actually laughs at the lovey-dovey scene. He then perks up to see Yifan lifting a hand in the air as the captain walks towards him. 

“Good job.” The elder says with a smile.

“You too.” Sehun smiles back as he gives the elder a decent high five.

He turns his head to Tao and sees his best friend giving him a bright smile. He loves that smile, always, but he knows that Yifan deserves that smile more than him.

He knows that Tao will look more dazzling if he’s smiling at Yifan.

They end up celebrating their win in Korean bbq restaurant, ordering enough meat to feed 10 families at least. Yifan announces the news about him quitting basketball and making Sehun as the new captain. No one has a problem with Sehun being the captain, but they do ask about the reason why Yifan quits even though there are still few months until he graduates college.

Yifan gives a small sigh before finally telling them the truth, about his health condition and his heart. Thankfully, it’s not life threatening at all, but he still needs to put more attention on his heart if he wants to live a long life, or that’s what the doctor told him in hospital.

Sehun glances over to see Tao staring at Yifan with sadness in his eyes. He knows Tao’s heart is breaking for Yifan, and his own heart is breaking to see such a sad look on Tao’s face.

After two hours of making a mess in the restaurant, they decide to call it a day and go home. They separate ways once they step out of the restaurant, leaving Sehun and Tao to walk side by side down the road like usual.

“So, you’re the captain now. Congratulations.” Tao raises his brows teasingly.

“Yeah, you better listen to me or I’ll tell you to mop the gym floor.” Sehun smirks smugly and Tao smacks his head playfully. He shakes his head with a laugh before taking out his phone. “Tao, can I borrow your phone for a while?”

Without further question, Tao takes his phone out and hands it to Sehun. “So, the talk you had with Yifan that day, was about you being captain?”

“Not only that.” Sehun hums as he types something on Tao’s phone. “We talked about a lot of stuff.”

“You did?” Tao blinks incredulously. He didn’t expect that the two guys would talk instead of strangling each other on the floor.

“We did.” Sehun nods. “And I found out that he’s actually a nice person, just like what you said.”

“See? I told you.” Tao huffs out a laugh and raises his brows.

“But I still don’t think we can be friends or anything like that.” Sehun exhales loudly as if he’s pissed about something.

“What? Why?” Tao scrunches up his face in confusion.

Sehun turns his head to the front and smiles. It’s time for Tao to tell the truth now. 

“Because we fell in love with the same person.”

Without even looking, Sehun knows Tao has stopped walking since he can hear the other’s footstep stops abruptly. He turns around to look at Tao who’s staring at him with wide eyes and a dropped jaw.

“Don’t believe me? I’m your best friend though.” Sehun laughs and cocks his head.

“Sehun…” Tao mutters softly, his black orbs starting to glisten with tears.

Sehun smiles bitterly at the sight. He knows how crybaby and sensitive his best friend is, but he really hopes that Tao won’t cry upon hearing the news. It should be a happy news for Tao to know that his feelings aren't one-sided, but Tao still cries. 

Sighing softly, he looks down to Tao’s phone on his hand before handing it back to his best friend. Tao drops his gaze to his phone and his eyes widen slightly at the new contact ID on the screen.

“Call him, say it tonight or else I won’t forgive you.” Sehun says with a smile.

Tao lifts his eyes back to Sehun and finally lets out a sob. He messily wipes some tears from his face before wrapping his arms around Sehun and pulling the latter into a tight hug.

“Thank you, Sehun… Thank you… And I’m sorry…” Tao says between broken sobs.

Sehun wraps his arms around Tao and closes his eyes, burying his face against the crook of Tao’s neck and inhales his scent for the last time.

“Don’t be sorry, Tao. I should be the one to apologize, I’m the third wheel after all.” He chuckles dryly.

“No, you are my best friend… Not a third wheel…” Tao sobs softly and Sehun smiles at the warm words.

“Thank you, Tao.”

He slowly pulls away from the hug and laughs at Tao’s crying face in front of him.

“You’re so ugly when you cry. Now call him. Hurry up.” He says as he nudges the phone. Tao nods before tapping the dial button and pressing the phone against his ear.

“Yifan… I-I’m okay… I want to see you… I want to talk…” Tao sobs into the phone, his tears dribbling down his cheeks as he cries. Sehun watches as drops of tears fall down from Tao’s chin and to the ground. How he wishes to reach a hand and wipe those tears away, but someone else is going to do it.

Sehun perks his head up a moment later to see Yifan at the end of the road. The ex-captain is running while turning his head around to search for Tao, still pressing the phone against his ear. Yifan stops looking around once his gaze locks onto the two males who are standing a few feet in front of him. Tao has his back turned to Yifan, but Sehun is facing him.

The younger raises a hand and gives a salute to Yifan before turning on his heel to walk down the street, leaving Tao who’s still crying into the phone, leaving Tao who’s still unaware that the person he loves is running over to him from behind.

Sehun keeps on walking, knowing that he probably can’t bring himself to watch the scene.

“Tao, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?”

He can still hear Yifan's voice due to the quietness of the night, but he doesn’t bring his hands up to cover his ears.

“Yifan… I like you, Yifan… I have for a while now…”

Comes Tao’s confession, muffled by the cries and sobs.

There is a second of silence and Sehun starts to get worried if Yifan is being a dumb again by pushing Tao away. He contemplates turning around, but then he hears Yifan’s voice. 

“T-Tao… I like you too. I always have.”

Hearing the answer, Sehun smiles to himself as he walks further, letting the tears finally trail down his own cheeks as his heart finally breaks into two. 

“Don’t cry anymore, Tao. Don’t cry…”

Yifan's voice sounds like a murmur because of the distance, but Sehun can still catch it pretty clearly.

_That’s right, Tao. Don’t cry anymore._

Sehun bites his lower lip as he tries to hold back a sob that threatens to slip out from his throat.

_But I hope you can let me cry just this once._

Once he rounds the corner of the street, he stops his step and brings a hand to cover his mouth. His legs seem to give up as he finds himself crouching down and crying painfully into his hand.

After this, everything is going to change. Yifan is no longer in the club and Sehun is going to be the captain. He and Tao are no longer _just_ friends, he has confessed his love to Tao and Tao has rejected him. Yifan and Tao are going to be lovers, hopefully not gross lovebirds like Chanyeol and Baekhyun.

Everything is going to change, but it will be fine. After this, everything is going to be fine again. He knows it will.

But tonight, he is not fine.

_Goodbye, my first love._

===

“So, you’re planning to move in with Yifan?”

Sehun asks, still keeping his eyes on the flappy bird game in his phone.

“Mhmm… I have packed my stuff and I’ll probably move tonight or tomorrow.” Tao replies, also focusing on his flappy bird since they made a deal that the one with fewer scores should go and buy a meal today.

“Just because you’ve moved in with your boyfriend, it doesn’t mean you can skip club activities, okay?” Sehun squints at his phone, tapping his thumb carefully against the screen.

“Ooookay, captain.” Tao hums sarcastically.

“You better—Shit!”

Sehun groans frustratingly when his bird crashes, earning a victorious cry from the male beside him.

“Alright, go and buy our meal. Shoo shoo.” Tao smiles cheekily while gesturing a hand to shoo his friend away.

Sehun sighs exasperatedly and rolls his eyes before making his way out of the class and to the cafeteria.

It has been a couple of months since they won the match, since Tao and Yifan confessed their feelings to each other and became lovers. Honestly, Sehun thinks that he actually moved on faster that he thought he would be, probably because Yifan is actually a nice guy and Tao is his best friend. It doesn’t really make sense, but what else is the reason?

Surprisingly, he and Yifan are getting along quite well. Yifan graduated last month, but they still talk about basketball once in a while or grab some meals together with Tao. He is happy that he can go back to how it was before, being Tao’s best friend without hurting himself everytime he sees Tao and Yifan together. He can proudly say that he’s happy for his best friend now.

Passing by the notice board, Sehun catches the sight of a young male staring at the board, at the basketball club poster to be exact. To be honest, Sehun isn’t the type of person who will walk over to a random guy and ask if he’s interested in joining and shit like that, but he thinks a captain is supposed to be like that, friendly and encouraging. 

Contemplating whether to approach the male or not, Sehun ends up staring at him for too long that the male seems to notice his eyes and turns around.

Sehun feels his heart stop for a millisecond, not because he’s being caught staring, but because he’s mesmerized by the other’s eyes. They’re so big and they look like they’re sparkling, as if they’re made of beautiful jewels and as cheesy as it sounds, Sehun thinks he can actually see stars inside them.

“Is there anything I can help you with?” The male tilts his head with a smile and Sehun coughs into his fist, trying to act cool.

“Uh, you’re staring at the basketball club poster.” He gestures and steps closer to the board. “Are you interested in joining?”

“Hmm, I’m still thinking.” The shorter male hums thoughtfully, tapping a finger on his chin as he stares at the poster. “I’m a bit short though… I’m not sure if I can do much in the team” He says with a soft chuckle.

“I don’t think height is a big problem in basketball.” Sehun says casually. When the othermale snaps his head to him, he realizes what he just said. He hopes that he didn’t offend the other by bringing up the height topic. Some guys can be very sensitive when it comes to height after all. “I mean… there are good NBA players who are not tall and I’ve seen a lot of amazing players who are considered short.”

“Mm.. I see…” The stranger smiles at him. “Are you a member of the club?”

“I am actually the captain.” Sehun clears his throat.

“Oh, no wonder…” The male nods his head, scanning Sehun over from head to toe before smiling at him. “Well, you make me put this into a good consideration. Thanks.”

“Uh, you’re welcome…?” Sehun smiles, not really sure how to respond to the other’s words.

The stranger, seems to notice the confused look on Sehun's face, laughs softly and _oh_ that is such a beautiful sound. Unlike Tao’s pitchy giggle, this male’s laugh is breathy and low, but smooth and melodious.

“Alright, see you.” He smiles again before turning around and walking down the hall, leaving Sehun muttering under his breath as he stares at the stranger’s back.

“What’s your name?”

===

“Alright boys, I have some news for you.”

The coach claps his hand, turning all the attention to him.

“Due to my age and some personal things, I’m going to retire from coaching.” The man says, earning a groan from the guys, but he quickly adds. “Don’t worry! I’ll come to your practice and match when I have the chance.”

The guys clap his hands, including Tao and Sehun who are staring at the coach with a sad smile. He is a good coach and they all know they’re going to miss him for sure.

“Enough with the sad face, I’m going to introduce you to our new coach. He is my son’s friend and I can tell you, he is really good.” The man gives a thumb up before gesturing a hand to the gym’s door. “Alright, come in.”

Everybody in the room turns their heads to the door, waiting for the new coach to walk in. After a second, a man walks into the room and Sehun’s jaw drops immediately at the sight, because he knows this man. He is the guy who was staring at the notice board yesterday, the guy with beautiful eyes.

And here he thought that guy was a freshman. Baby face sure is scary.

The new coach locks his eyes onto Sehun and gives him a shy smile. Sehun swallows dryly and blinks, refusing to believe that the beautiful male in front of him is older than him and is going to be the team’s new coach.

“Hello.” The new coach greets with a smile. “My name is Luhan and I’m going to be your coach from now on. Please take care of me.”

Luhan bows politely and the guys quickly bow back to him, showing their politeness to the older guy who doesn’t look like he’s actually older.

When lifting his head up, Sehun's eyes are locked onto the other’s deer eyes again. They stay like that for a while, staring into each other’s eyes while Sehun tries not to get lost in the other’s beautiful eyes.

“Alright, Luhan.” The ex-coach says, patting onto the new coach's shoulder. “That guy over there with a bitch-face is called Sehun, he is the captain.”

Never once Sehun feels like throwing his shoe at the man’s head.

Luhan laughs softly before staring into Sehun’s eyes again.

“Nice to meet you, Sehun.”

This feels like the start of something new.

It feels like the start of another love story.

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Sehun's POV done. Next will be Tao's!


End file.
